Rise of the Lord
by samurai89
Summary: Evil always finds a way-Was Gnarls favorite quote, and how true it was... Story back on track, just really slow updates
1. Chapter 1

**Hello to anyone who reads the AN! This will be my first ever story i will take seriously cause my other ones just plain sucked. This means 5000+ words for every chapter and i actually have a plot. Please leave a review at the end and tell me what you think.  
**

* * *

**Rise of the Lord**

Gnarl was an old minion, a very old minion. One of the first minions to be created in fact. When he was young he was like all browns. Obeying the Overlord, destroying, wreaking havoc and generally being a force of evil, it was all standard. This brings on the question of "How the hell is he this old?", a very valid question. The lifespan of a general brown was a week at most, a month maybe if they scavenged good equipment. However, the unique thing about Gnarl was that he had survived so many battles and so many beatings by the Overlord he was actually praised by his creator. A very, very rare thing indeed. With this praise came a little gift, something that differed Gnarl from all other minions. The blood of the first Overlord.

You see, the Overlord was dying. He had gotten too arrogant and thus, tended to underestimate enemies. A lucky band of heroes capitalized on this and, with a spell cast by a mage's last breath before he was slain, the Overlord had received the curse of the dead. A spell that even the mighty Lord of Darkness could not counter. It slowly ate away at his body, every day was agony for him, his flesh would rot and become putrid, infest with maggots and then fall off. The blues tried all they could but the mage had done his work well, the minions could do nothing but watch as their lord and leader slowly rotted away.

In his final year, the Overlord entrusted his most loyal and best minion to continue the line of the Overlords. Gnarl was tasked with this job, so the Overlord gave the newly dubbed "Minion Master" some of his life force by transferring some of his blood into Gnarl. During that year he had taught Gnarl, who's brain capacity and lifespan had expanded drastically, the true ways of evil. Unfortunately he had died before he could pass on all his knowledge. No matter though, in the absence of the Overlord the minions had someone to turn to, they had a leader.

All throughout time, Gnarl had done what his first master had tasked him to do, to continue the line of Overlords and ensure evil kept on flowing. Like the sun, the Overlords (sometimes Overladies) had risen and fallen. Some lived for centuries, some died within the week. All left their own mark of evil. This pattern would never stop, always continuing and flowing like an endless river. Nothing could fully stop evil, not the grandest mages, not the mightiest warriors, not the most cunning of thieves or assassins, not emperors, not kings or queens, not warlords, no one and nothing could ever stop evil. It will and would always find a way...

* * *

The graveyard was dark and chilling, an endless mist covered it like a blanket. Fear is what one would feel if they walked through here late at night. Fear and dread.

"Ahhhh, truly magnificent" the old voice of the Minion Master croaked. In his hands he held the Overlord gauntlet containing the shard that channeled his will into the minions, though that wasn't the only thing it could do. One of it's many purposes was to find a concentration of evil, like say perhaps a new Overlord. Gnarl swept the gauntlet over the graves, the five other browns behind him following dutifully as he went grave by grave. None of the bodies so far were any good, they all seemed to die peacefully or their souls passed on.

Another sweep on a grave however, the shard glowed a bright amber and emitted a low hum. They had found their new master.

"Get digging!" Gnarl barked.

The minions set to work with shovels, digging the coffin out. Gnarl took his time to read the inscription on the grave marker;

"Here lies Dairn Maar, son of Derling Maar and Eathin Harrow, brother to Velita Maar.

Killed by a bandit raid

May his soul find find peace with the rest of his family"

_Not a very unique marker for a future Overlord_, Gnarl thought. _Something more evil would be fitting but an overlord is an overlord._

Soon enough the coffin was dug out and the entourage of minions and minion master made their way to the netherworld gate.

* * *

Even though the Netherworld tower was deep in the center of the world and surrounded by magma, the temperature was quite warm. Gnarl had the minions set the coffin down on the ground in the throne room.

He pointed to the minions "Gook, Pummel, go grab two evil shards quickly!", pointing to another minion "Grobel, get a hammer and chisel!"

The minions hurried off to find their assigned items. The shards were concentrated evil energy that had taken a crystallized form. They appeared every now and then, a tower that was the center of evil had plenty of evil energy to concentrate. Gook and Pummel came back carrying the glowing dark shards along with Grobel with a hammer and chisel, Gnarl took the shards off the minions hands. The lid of the coffin had been opened and showed a rotting corpse, the face past the point of being recognizable. He placed one shard just above where the heart would be and the other next to it. With the hammer and chisel he chipped away at the shard until he broke though the core, doing the same to the other one he took a few steps back as the evil energy within the shards leaked into the corpse.

The corpse shined with a black light and slowly the body regenerated. Bone, muscle and everything else remade itself. However, the process seemed to stop even when the two shards were absorbed completely. Gnarl made a 'hmmm' before sending two more minions to find evil shards. _The capacity of evil energy is quite high on this one, he shows promise..._. The minions came back and Gnarl repeated the process of chipping away at the shards until they leaked their evil energy. The regeneration continued, most of the body now looked like it would of when it was alive, the mending stopped when the last bit of the shards leaked their energy into the body.

It was clearly a teenage boy, about sixteen years of age. His skin was lightly tanned, short black hair on his head and quite a good looking face, not ugly but definateley not handsome. The clothes he was buried in had rotten away showing a body that was taught and lithe, tight muscles on his arms, legs and abdomen suggested he had done some sort of physical labor continuously throughout his life. Slowly, ever so slowly the eyelids opened to show a pair of....Red and black eyes?

_"Huh?"_ Gnarl and the minions wondered, they were bewildered. Never had they encountered such an odd pair of mismatched eyes, though Gnarl had his theory. _"I may have put a tiny bit too much evil energy...". _The boy had sat up and was looking at them, a curious stare like that of a small child. Gnarl approached him.

"Welcome back to the living my lord" He greeted

The odd eyes turned to the minion master, the boy opened his mouth to speak but the voice was weak like a whisper "Who...are...you"

Gnarl smiled, showing his fangs. "I am Gnarl the minion master sire, a devout servant of the Overlord"

"Over...what?"

"Overlord sire, meaning you"

Black and red eyes still showed confusion "This place....where?"

Gnarl spread his arms out "This is the Netherworld sire, we are in your evil tower"

"Mine?"

"Yes sire, as the new Overlord this cradle of evil is now your home . The things behind me are minions, your loyal servants. Everything you see around here is yours"

Dairn looked around, the tower would have looked magnificent. If not for the fact that it was crumbling. He tried getting up but his limbs were new and weak, though that didnt stop him from trying. Steadily and slowly he got up and placed his feet on the stone floor, which was oddly warm. As a matter of fact, even wearing nothing he was not cold. He turned and faced a throne that looked to be made of stone with some parts broken off, a long sheet of red silk draped over it.

"That is your throne sire, it's not in the best of conditions but now with you awake we can renovate it. Along with the rest of this tower" Gnarl spoke walking up to the side of the throne. "It will take you some time to get used to all this, so follow me". Darin looked at the back of the old minion master before following, wanting to find answers for questions he didnt even know.

* * *

A week had passed for Dairn. A very long week. Unlike most of the previous overlords who preferred the axe as a starting weapon, Dairn had Giblet the forge master make a single edged broadsword using steel from stolen weapons and a forge they raided, it was Dairn's first experience of killing. The black hilt was curved to give better grip, the pommel was rounded and studded and it had a circular guard. The blade itself was straight then widened at the end adding weight to cuts, though it was still quite light. It also had a simple black sheathe (1).

Gnarl had told him he was to be a new Overlord, commanding the forces of evil and bending it to his will. Dairn was getting accustomed to the tower, only going out once or twice. He learned how to control his minions, tough never having any combat experience at all he was lacking in style. Gnarl also told him about the current state of the world. The "Glorious Empire" held vast swathes of land, their armies were near invincible and their power absolute. The eradication of magical creatures seemed to be their main goal.

There were other peoples in the world as well, peoples like the Gauls, Germania and Viking tripes who lived in the frozen northlands, between them and the Empire lands were the shrouded mountains rumored to be the home of the Dwarves. There were also the many eastern tribes who were commonly referred to as the "Men of the east", they lived in the harsh desert of Numidia under the baking sun and the great river Hassan was the border between them and the Empire. The scattered kingdoms of Darndania in the west were guarded by the Marshlands, a chain of swamps and marshes that held countless dangers. Though it could still be accessed by sea in the west and south. All these peoples had one thing in common, hatred for the Empire. For years they have waged war after war with land swinging back and forth, now though all sides seemed to have hit a stalemate.

When Dairn had learned most of what Gnarl could teach him about the position of the Overlord, he had set about practicing his skill with his blade. Gnarl assisted him, having seen many Overlords in combat he was very helpful. Though it would still be quite some time for Dairn to practically use the sword in combat. Right now fists would be fine, the menacing gauntlets adding a whole lot of extra damage. Dairn wore the standard minion armour, though he had a new odd addition. Most Overlords Gnarl had served under never used shields, Dairn did. It was a deeply dished wooden shield with a angled rim, a band for the arm at the center, and a hand grip near the edge. The entire front was covered with a thin sheet of bronze.(2) The shield gave added protection, perfect for an Overlord who didnt know how to use a blade yet.

Currently Dairn was out of the tower, exploring the open field the netherworld gate deposited him into. With him were ten minions, four of them the original ones that dug him up, one was from the life force of the blacksmith they killed and the rest were unlucky deer the minions caught while Dairn was out. The sky was a nice hue of blue, flowers were in abundance and there were a few trees dotted about. It looked peaceful and serene, something Gnarl complained about. He was out here to collect more life force, a measly army of ten brown minions simply wont do. A good thing though was that the minions had swords or hammers from the raid of the forge, the rest that were not used were taken back into the tower. They had a good supply of at least twenty swords and lots of hammers.

Shield strapped to his left arm and sword in his sheath, Dairn strode through the field trying to find some sort of life. It was most likely spring time since the flowers were starting to open up. Walking up a hill to get a better vantage point, he spied a village not far from where he was. It was circular and had a wooden palisade. There was also a small river running nearby powering a windmill, it was probably the source of water for the fields that were all around and, more interestingly to him, livestock of sheep and cattle.

"Ahhh" Gnarls voice sounded through his helmet "Sheep and cattle, doing nothing but eat grass all day long waiting for someone to kill them! Master, they make the perfect farm for life force! Well, them and humans..."

Choosing to ignore the ramblings of the minion master, Dairn continued surveying the village. Farmers milled about doing their daily routine of raking and sowing the fields, joined along by young boys and teenagers. Oddly though, there were men on the palisade with what looked like bows and a single outpost tower that was manned by the road leading to the village.

Coming down the hill he made his way to the dirt road with his minions, almost as soon as he was spotted the men on the outpost pounded their weapons and shouted. The men and boys working the fields immediately ran inside the village, followed shortly after the watch-post crew. Dairn continued until he reached the village gates, looking up he saw farmers holding crude bows with shaking hands and arrows notched. _"Farmers wielding weapons arent much of a threat..."_ he thought.

"Stranger, what would your business be on this quite little village of Basing!?" A man shouted from atop the wall. Darin looked up to get a look at him, the man wore simple cloth shirt and pants. In his hand was a sword of decent quality and he seemed to be shaking, though he was doing a good job of hiding it.

"Why is there so much hostility to one man and his pets?" Dairn shouted back. He had gained strength in his voice, mainly by shouting at the minions and Gnarl.

The man seemed to relax a bit but he was still tense "Bandits raid us every year, they take our food and women, we must protect ourselves!"

"I am no bandit, and please tell your men to lower their bows, shaking hands and notched arrows are not a good combination"

The man hesitated but ordered the men to lower their bows "You still have not told me what your purpose here is!"

Dairn thought for a moment, then a plan came to mind "I am...a wandering swordsman, if i might ask, what would you give for me to eliminate these bandits?"

The man hesitated for a moment "We will give anything that we could provide!". A murmur swept through the men on the walls, maybe, just maybe they could finally be rid of the bandits that had plagued them for so long.

"Even your loyalty as my subjects?". Silence followed Dairns words.

The man gulped, he was sweating and shaking "I...Must discuss this with the rest of the village". With that the man ran down the wall accompanied by all who were with him. _"They leave a potential enemy unguarded and unseen...Weak"_ Dairn thought.

* * *

Doryn was nervous, after his father died because of old age the title of Mayor went to him. The burden of responsibility had been passed to him, for five years he had led this village. Making sure every mouth was fed and that there was enough grain and livestock to last till the next year were all his tasks. The bandits however, could not be stopped. Many men had died trying to send a message to the city nearby to call for help, the bandits having taken down signposts and covered the tracks to the village making sure no one would come here. Basing was isolated and forgotten.

Now though, this so called swordsman was at their gates proposing to eliminate the bandits. The problem was though, could he? _"The man will get killed and the bandits will attack us early!"_ he though, _"Or he could destroy them and we would be free"_ another part of his mind spoke. _"What happens even if he does? We could be giving our loyalty to a tyrant!"_. He was stood on a raised platform, facing the rest of the village. _"Look at them Doryn! Their looking to you to solve their problems! Come on, think! Decide already!"_

With a shaky voice he spoke to the crowd "People of Basing! Today a stranger has come offering to rid us of the bandits" A ray of hope seemed to shine upon the crowd, their torment could soon end! "But, he asks for our loyalty" Like before, there was silence. The people looked shaken, though there was still a glimmer of hope.

"Does he even have any skill!?" One man shouted

"Yeah, he could get killed and the bandits will attack us early for revenge!"

"Or he could be our savior!" This time a woman shouted "Maybe he can kill the bandits!"

There was now a full on shouting war between the villagers. The women were mostly for letting the stranger be their lord, they had suffered many beatings and raping and had enough. Most of the men were doubtful, they tried to fight back once but they were beaten and many were killed or captured. What could one man do?

"ENOUGH!" Doryn shouted. The crowd silenced and turned their attention back at him. He took one calming breath before speaking "I...have made my final decision" The crowd waited in anticipation. "I have decided that...We will trust him! But only on one condition!"

* * *

Dairn sat cross legged on the floor, waiting for the incompetent man to come back.

"You have a very odd method to gain life force sire" Gnarl said, "Instead of slaughtering them all, which is the fun way mind you, you wish to gain a steady supply by their offerings if they decide to make you their lord. A smart but very boring method, wouldn't it be better to hear them scream as you plunge a sword through their gut?"

Dairn smirked, "Gnarl, as much as i enjoy listening to your ramblings, my decision is final. Besides, if their smart and agree, slaughtering bandits will be the same thing. Just that little bit more challenging"

*sigh* "Remember though sire, i mean no offense but your skill with the sword is rather....lacking shall we say"

"Then this will be a chance to get some experience eh, Gnarl?"

"I suppose, but still, do be careful sire. Oh, the useless sack of flesh is back"

Dairn sat up and looked at Doryn, he seemed reasonably calm. There was still the occasional twitch though. "Stranger, I have decided that ithe best thing to do would be to accept your offer. On one condition though"

Dairn raised an eyebrow, "What would that be?"

Doryn took a deep breath "We will serve you and call you our lord only if you bring back the head of the bandit leader Thag!"

Dairn gave a nod "Very well"

* * *

It was night time, the moon had risen near to it's peak. It had been a couple of hours since Dairn had agreed to take on the bandits, Doryn had two men lead him as close as possible to the bandit camp. The camp was in the nearby woodland, there weren't very many trees but enough for good cover. The two guides had bolted off when they came within sight of the first tree. There was a loud racket coming from within the trees and glows of a large campfire and several smaller ones were visible.

"These bandits are careless, though they really dont have to fear anything from simple farmers" Dairn mumbled. The other minions were behind him, exited and eager to kill. The bandits didnt even have sentries out, which made sneaking in easy. Dairn and company went to the fringes of the clearing the bandits had made, giving them almost full view of the camp. What Dairn saw disgusted him. The bandits were dancing around a large fire, women from the village were on their knees naked and being violated. Tears were flowing and marks on their body suggested they were beaten or cut. Those that did not have their mouths occupied pleaded and begged in vain as they were raped again and again. What was more sickening though was the cage off to the side, inside were children from six to twelve. Mostly girls but there were some boys, they too were crying and shaking in fear.

This vile scene spurred something within Dairn's mind. A memory of his previous life. Something that should have stayed buried.

* * *

_He was in pain, his body was bleeding from numerous cuts and his arms were held down. He was crying, with no strength left to even struggle. Next to him was the dead corpse of his father, eyes wide and mouth open with a silent scream, blood was seeping from the holes through his chest_ _and stomach. His eyes were held witness to the morbid scene in front of him though. His mother and sister, clothes ripped, were being raped. The men held looks of sickening joy whilst they thrust into the women again and again. _

_Dairn tried to struggle again but to no avail, he had lost too much blood. Pain racked through him, relentless and burning. Like a endless fire was consuming him. It was all so painful...

* * *

_

Dairn was on his knees vomiting and shaking uncontrollably. His breath came in gasps and tears flowed from his eyes. The memory was too much for him, far too much.

"Master ok?" One minion asked worriedly.

Dairn suddenly stopped moving, as if frozen. Then, he calmly got up and faced his minions. The creatures gaped at the sight before them. Dairn's mismatched eyes, they were glowing with an unholy light. Red and black menacing orbs held an unimaginable hatred and...evil. "Tonight.." His voice was different from the nonchalant tone he normally used, it was cold like a grave "...these wretched souls will know the meaning of fear and pain". For a brief moment his eyes glow intensified before receding. Gnarl almost felt sorry for the bandits...almost

* * *

The moon was now at its zenith, a white crescent against a black sky. The camp held at least fifty armed bandits and thirty women and children prisoners. The tents were not in any order, just a large one in the middle and the rest scattered around it. The bandits seemed to have just gone to sleep, those that were not already passed out anyway. The women were herded back into the cage with the children and given some blankets, not nearly enough to cover all of them.

The fire had been left to burn until morning, rocks around it making sure no stray embers set fire to anything or anyone. Dairn silently walked into the camp since most of the bandits were passed out on the floor. He did not see Thag amongst them. Dairn had ordered the minions to keep quite and kill silently and bring back the life-force, not a very easy order for browns to obey but their overlord commanded and they would obey. As they passed through Dairn hand chopped the heads of sleeping men, their blood spurting on his arm and legs. Again and again the blade went down and heads rolled as Dairns life-force count went up. The minions were not idle either, multiple minions would stab the head of one man and move on to the next, some would use hammers to smash into the head and splatter blood and brain matter.

Dairn also gave another order, at least twenty were to be restrained and brought to the center near the fire. Unfortunately the browns were not careful enough and had managed to drop a man they were carrying. He woke up screaming since his face hit the fire. His screams alerted the whole camp and the bandits that were not killed or bound reached for their weapons and ran around, frantically trying to find something through the haze of a hangover.

A bandit had managed to find Dairn and ran at him waving his weapon wildly, Dairn blocked the swing and replied with a slash across the mans stomach. With no armour to protect him the broadsword cut into the mans exposed flesh. Dairn followed up with a smack in the exposed stomach with his shield sending the man tumbling back, before Dairn could finish him another bandit made itself know by thrusting a dagger behind the overlord. The armour blunted the attack and Dairn spun anti-clockwise and slammed his shield into the mans face knocking him back, Dairn followed with a kick to the mans calf making the bandit drop, taking his chance Dairn slammed the rim of his shield into the mans head forcing him on the ground and finished with a downward swipe to the back of the skull. Blood splashed across him in a spray of crimson as the life-force of the dead man drifted to the gauntlet.

The minions around him were doing what they do best, stabbing and hacking and smashing anything that came at them or their lord. Wild yells and screams reverberated through the air as death loomed over those unfortunate enough to witness the cold, hard rage of the Overlord and his steel.

Dairn blocked a blow from a man wielding two swords, the weight of the blades forced him back and he stumbled on his back. He rolled to the side avoiding the strike that would have cut him in three. On a crouch, forgetting his sword, he dived for the mans legs and tackled him to the floor. He crawled over the man and pounded his right fist into the bandits face, the metal gauntlet smashing bones every hit. Unstrapping his shield he held it with two hands above the moaning body and slammed it down into the bandits eyes again and again, blood gushing out from every hit.

Confident the man was dead since the life force went out of him, Dairn got off him and picked up his sword. Looking around him the fighting seemed to halt, in front were what was left of the bandits with some sporting wounds. Behind were his ten minions with wounds as well, though the browns were built for fighting so the cuts and gashes probably didnt affect them as much as normal humans.

"Who be killin' me men!" A rough voice shouted, the line of bandits parted to let a imposing man through. He was large, taller than Dairn's 5'10. What made it more imposing though was the HUGE deer antlers on his head, being supported by rope that tied around his waist. Wearing nothing but cotton pants and leather boots, he made a frightening sight....

...To anyone else apart from the Overlord however. Dairn stood there looking at Thag with glowing mismatched eyes, blood coating his armour and blade, dripping off him in rivulets of crimson. A dark and cold aura could be seen and felt around him. Some bandits stood with shaking hands, whilst some were all out pissing themselves.

"Well!" Thag demanded.

Dairn spoke coldly, his eyes glow intensifying "I see no men....Only filth"

Thag's breath caught when he saw those eyes. _"So dark..." _But he had no time to regain his composure as Dairn charged head on into him shield and sword forgotten, shoulder barging the larger man and doubling him over. A left hook followed by an uppercut forced Thag back. Following up with his momentum Dairn kicked out with his left leg and connected with Thags right, however Thag took the brunt without shaking and replied with his own left hook. The fist connected with Dairns helmet sending him flying back.

"Master! You must use your sword!" Gnarl urged.

Back-pedalling away from Thag, Dairn extended his hand and called his minions to retrieve his sword and shield. The bandits formed a ring around them with their weapons held out, either out of fear or they were too interested in the fight, they did not interfere. Dairn's shield covered all of his body from neck to knees, it also gave an added advantage of being able to hide his sword if it was put lengthways.

Thag had been given his weapon, a large one sided axe that looked like it could cleave a man in half. The two combatants faced each other with blade and axe at the ready. For a moment nothing happened. Then, as if by a mental signal, the two charged.

Dairn rolled to the side as Thag swung his axe over the overlords head. Launching from a crouch Dairn slammed into Thag with his shield sending the bigger man back but Thag regained balance and surged forward. With his larger size the bandit leader had the advantage and Dairn was hurled to the side. Thag swung his axe downwards eager to crush his enemy. Dairn quickly raised his shield to protect himself. The axe head impacted with so much force it punched through the bronze and wood but fortunately stopped short from Dairns face.

Thag smirked, the fool was dead! He was so confident in his victory that he threw his axe with the shield still attached to the side. Then he felt a stab of pain as cold steel was run through him. Looking down he saw Dairn with his arm out and half of a broadsword inside of him. Dairn pushed up and pulled his sword out of the dying bandit. Looking down he saw a slit where his sword was, blood was pouring out of the wound and Thag's mouth...which was smirking.

Dairn raised an eyebrow "Are you happy about your death?"

Thag's smirk widened "Heh..Heh...Good job...But...We're not the only bandits out here...Hah hah"

Dairn levelled his sword at Thag's neck "Explain"

"...Once...boss...hears...b'out this.....You...your gunn'a die!" Thag coughed up some blood, he sneered showing his bloody teeth. "Your....gunn'a...DIE!" Thag went into a coughing fit before being silenced by a swift cut through the neck. His head rolled leaving behind a trail of blood, the life force drifted from his body and Darin snatched it up.

Becoming aware of the eyes of the bandits, he pointed his sword at them. "Minions, kill them!" The bandits bolted in fear as Dairn and his minions chased after them, Dairn dropped his shield and ran as fast as he could cutting down any man in front of him. The minions who were faster cut the ankles of the fleeing men and left them to crawl, they would come back for them later.

* * *

**(1) Google Broadsword, its the Practical broadsword**

**(2) A Hoplon is the Greek shield their Hopolites used and what gave the unit their name.**

**Well, thats the end of that chapter. Again, review and tell me what you think.**

**Was Dairn too strong or too weak for a new Overlord?**

**Do i write good fight scenes?**

**Do i write well in general?**

**Are you interested?**

**Any and all suggestions are welcome!  
**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hi again. Thanks to all of you who have put me on alerts, favorites and have reviewed. Special thanks to DarklightZERO** **for a detailed review and a story idea im going to use, thanks!**

* * *

**Rise of the Lord**

Darin had returned to the camp with his minions in tow. The brows were carrying the bandits weapons wrapped up in whatever the unlucky man was wearing at that time, along the way finishing off the crawling ones left behind earlier. The smell of blood and death perforated the air as the dead had relaxed their bowels and flies started gathering. Dairn, still soaked in blood walked past the flickering fire that was amazingly not disturbed in the chaos the night before. Entering the largest tent he found baskets of grain and dried meat along with an interesting object. It was circular with a blue orb in the center.

"That's one of the spell stones sire! The greedy bandit must've kept it for himself" Gnarl said. He ordered four minions who were not already carrying things to bring it back to the netherworld gate. Hearing noises from outside he left to investigate. It was the women and children, they were smiling and crying tears of joy. Walking up to the cage Dairn chopped off the lock and set them free, everyone hugging him, saying their thanks and crying into his chest or shoulder on their way out.

"Ah, almost forgot.." Dairn murmured. Walking back to the fire he saw the bound and gagged men that the browns managed to capture, there were five of them. Each had already wet themselves since a puddle had formed, their eyes were wide with fear and tears were falling. Walking up to them he smacked his shield on their heads knocking them out, looking at his minions he ordered "Gather all the weapons and get them back to the tower. Once your done come back for these five, oh and take my shield to Giblet and have him repair it" the minions quickly ran to the gate to carry out their orders.

"Gnarl"

"Yes master?"

"Once you have these pieces of filth torture them for any and all information you can find"

Gnarl _giggled_ "Ohhh, thank you master, i will break them slowly.."

Before he left Dairn picked up Thag's head, his new prize.

* * *

The reception Dairn received at the village was joyful, to say the least. Cries of joy were heard as the village's suffering was finally put to an end. Doryn ran up to him and hugged him, tears stained his face as the biggest smile adorned his lips. "You are our savior!" he cried over and over again.

The overlord slowly pulled himself away. "I hope you remember our deal"

Doryn stopped crying and looked Darin in the eyes, the menacing red and black staring back at him. They stared at each other for a few moments, the villagers noticed the stare-down and halted their celebrations. Then, Doryn got on his knees and bowed, his forehead touching the floor. "Of course, lord!"

The rest of the village followed suit, bowing to their new lord.

"Master, the browns have collected all the weapons and the prisoners have arrived. The spell stone you found earlier is the Evil Presence spell, it will make weak minded fools obey you....or you could fry their heads in a beautiful sight of blood and gore" It seemed like the villagers weren't the only ones joyful "Come back to the tower master and test it out!"

"I will later" Dairn replied.

All through that morning the village was in a happy mood, though the scars of their torment would take years to heal. The children that were held prisoner had seen things that a child should never lay eyes on, their minds were not set straight and it would be some time before they could recover. Some of the women were in the same state with their will and spirit broken, their eyes lost all life it once held.

Dairn had talked to Doryn to find out how all this started. The village mayor said that it all started when The Glorious Empire invaded. Their King had attacked whilst the Empire army was still unloading troops, the surprise attack was successful but the King was killed by a balista bolt. With the king having no heir the remaining generals and some lieutenants fought for the throne. The civil war devastated the country until finally, after two long and bloody years there were only two people left that were vying for the throne. The others having been killed or left to join the other Kingdoms.

One man was Gard, he controlled the lands inland and the capital city Amor, currently his army was the strongest and he ruled with an iron hand. Opposing him was the general Erza Scarlet(1) who wanted to bring peace and strength back into her country, her lands were mainly the coastal fishing villages. During the fighting bandits came, at first at a trickle but then they flooded in. With hardly anyone opposing them they rampaged through the country capturing towns and villages. Gard employed some of them to bolster his army whilst Erza seeked to destroy them. One of these marauding bandit groups took Basin three years ago and have been the main cause of suffering for the villagers.

After listening to Doryn's tale Dairn went back to the Netherworld gate and summoned twenty browns, armed them with the bandit weapons and told them to guard the village. Ten would be in the village itself whilst the others would patrol the surrounding area. The villagers were reluctant at first but soon accepted their new 'guards'. Dairn also had Grubber, the digger minion, open up a Netherworld gate and spawning pits inside the village. This would be where the village deposited it's offerings to their lord, Dairn had already taken three quarters of the food the bandits had stolen. The village still had enough food to feed themselves, the bandits just took the excess.

Dairn left the village soon after and headed back to the tower, there were prisoners waiting for him...

* * *

The netherworld main gate shined down on the floor, indicating Dairns arrival. Since they had not built a torture room (they were too busy rebuilding) yet so the prisoners were tied up in a corner. There were three of them still alive whilst two had already died due to Gnarl's masterful torturing skills. Speaking of the minion master...

"Ahhh, sire. I suppose you'd want to know what they've been saying. This land is one of the Kingdoms of Dardania, the Kingdom of Margos. The region is on the southern coast but it is not rich enough to build a commercial port, however there are a few fishing villages dotted about. You know of how the bandits got here but there are some interesting things ive learnt. Nearby are two villages, Woodrough and Hardrock, both are in the same situation that Basin was in and maybe if you liberate them they will join you. Down south is one of the fishing villages that Erza controls and maybe you could join her in uniting the Kingdom. Or just go to Gard and help him, then maybe stab him in the back for his troubles" Gnarl chuckled before he turned to one of the bound men. The bandits were terrified, having witnessed their comrades brutal torture. The minion master ripped out the cloth gagging one of the men.

"Please! We'll tell you everything! Let us live! Please! Please!.." Dairn silenced the mans begging by a kick to the stomach.

"You are filth and trash that deserve no mercy!" The overlord yelled, his voice taking a deeper tone. "Gnarl, what about this evil presence spell?"

"Well sire, it is a spell that lets you implant your will in the minds of your opponents and make them obey you. Or you could hold it for a bit longer and kill them. Just point to which one you want and channel your dark energy, try it sire!"

Dairn raised his right hand, pointed it at the man he booted and focused his energy. Blue lightning shot out from his arm and connected with the mans head, the man opened his mouth in a silent scream as his mind was being destroyed. Holding it for a few seconds he let go and the man slouched with his head down. "Obey your lord and rise filth" Dairn commanded.

"Yes lord" The empty voice of the bandit said, he stood up and Dairn got a good look at him. His eyes were clouded white and there was a glowing blue tattoo on his head.

Dairn was impressed, who knows what he could do with such a spell. Turning to the other two he cast the spell again and gained a new servant, for the other one though Dairn held it until the mans head blew open in a spray of brain and blood. "Beautiful sire, a true work of evil art!" Gnarl congratulated him.

"What is your name" Dairn asked his new servants.

"Verge, master" Replied the first bandit.

"Harlond, master" Replied the second.

"Verge, go out to Woodrough and find a place to open up a gate. Once your done infiltrate the bandit camp there and find out everything about it. Harlond, do the same with Hardrock. Go!" The two quickly left via gate. Looking at the bloody mess he made Dairn ordered Quaver the jester to clean it up, the minion complained but was stomped on the foot before he finished his sentence.

Dairn walked up the steps and sat down on this throne which was repaired during the week. Most of the rubble had been cleared away and being used to repair the private quarters. Dairn had planned to build a training room, a torture room and a laboratory to further research into the minion genes. Something that no other Overlord had done before, probably because like Dairn, they didnt know the first thing about genetics. Sometime in the future the Overlord needed to get an expert on his side. Dairn also planned to extend the forge once the reds have been found. All this needed magical rock which was easy to get, it was floating everywhere in the netherworld.

Trying to get comfortable, Dairn noticed something "Gnarl, how is that i dont feel at all tired when i stayed awake all day and fought all night yesterday?"

"Well sire, your connection with the netherworld has some positive effects, like refilling your energy and healing any wounds if you are near a netherworld gate or in the netherworld itself. This is why training here is far better than outside, you will never tire" The minion master replied.

"Hmmm, i might as well take this time to inspect construction" Dairn made his way to the private chambers. The room had scaffolding spread around it and browns were getting to work repairing walls with the rubble that was cleared from the throne room, off to the side he saw the Construction Master Hammer instructing the other browns. Dairn did not have any furniture in here yet, he would have to get some soon, especially a bed.

"Sire" Gnarl called from behind "The repairs are going fine and the food you brought has been turned to life force, you now have an army of sixty browns to accompany you. For now though i suggest putting on hold construction plans, lets get training with your sword first, Quaver has even volunteered to be your sparring partner!"

"No i not!" The jester yelled only to be dragged out of the room by Gnarl. Dairn smiled at the antics before following, he needed to sharpen his skills after all. Once in the throne room Gnarl had begun instructing his master to use the blade, Quaver was tied to a post to stop him from moving. This continued on for the whole day and until the following morning, Dairn performing strikes and swipes and doing steps like a dancer. His broadsword was a cutting object (something that Quaver really did not like), not suited for stabbing so wide swings were needed, this also left him vulnerable though so he had to practice rolling and dodging whilst phantom enemies attacked him.

Dairn was so focused he jumped when the gate activated and Harlond materialized. The bandit turned slave was a bit woozy before bowing to Dairn.

"Master, i have found a place for a netherworld gate and have infiltrated the bandit camp. The leader of this group is Dash, the camp holds about fifty men with twenty four prisoners. The village itself has about forty people in it and it is right in front of a stone mine. They have a wooden wall but with no one guarding it the bandits scaled the fifteen feet barrier and taken the village.

Dash has posted men around the campsite to give early warnings. Problem is that most of these men take this time to sleep and are easy to sneak up on. Dash himself though will make a quick escape at the first sign of any strong resistance, he has yet to hear about the elimination of Thag"

Dairn was impressed, Harlond was good if he learned that much in just one day. "Go back to the camp and stay low, do everything you can to disrupt their escape until i attack. If Dash makes any attempt to escape hinder him"

"Yes master" With that Harlond left.

The Overlord turned to Gnarl "Tonight i will be attacking with twenty minions, make sure Giblet finishes my shield before then"

Gnarl nodded "Where will you be master?"

"A lord needs to visit his subjects every now and then"

* * *

Basin was more or less returning back to normal and Dairn took this chance to inspect the village with Doryn acting as a guide. The village had houses and the blacksmith built away from the wall whilst two bakeries and a butcher were near them. The village cesspit was just behind, it was lined with stone so it would not seep into the river, every weekend it was cleared and spread in the fields to act as compost. Dairn felt sorry for the poor villager who picked the short end of the stick. The town hall and storage building were in the center, the town square would act as the market if there were traders.

Outside Dairn visited the water mill where the grain was fed into the hopper, then it would go through the water powered grinding stones and finally the flour would end up in baskets at the bottom where they were divided by grade. Continuing his tour of the fields Dairn came across the few cattle and sheep, there were also a few chickens running about and being chased by children. One of the kids, a little girl with brown hair and a plain cloth dress, picked a flower and offered it to the overlord with a cute, happy smile.

"Mista lord man!" She giggled.

Suddenly Dairn's vision hazed and his body went numb.

* * *

_He was sitting on a stump giggling and laughing as his sister tried to get the water off her hair. The little boy was laughing so hard he never noticed the mischievous smirk on the girls face. Like a predator, she ran and lunged for him and tackled him off the stump. They rolled on the floor a bit before the girl pinned the boy on the floor._

_"Ha! Who's the strongest and best now brother?" She gloated._

_The boy struggled fiercely, not willing to admit defeat. Finally he pushed both of them up and grabbed hold of his sister's waist and rolled them so he was pinning her to the ground. "Me Velly!" He laughed._

_"Get off me or i'll scream brother!" She threatened. Dairn let go, afraid of what his parents would say if they found out his sister was screaming because of him again. The girl got up and dusted herself off. Walking back to the river she spotted something "Ohhh!" Running up to it she lowered herself onto the ground and took a closer look at the flower. _

_"What is it?" Dairn said following her._

_Reaching out and gently plucking the flower she showed it to her brother "Look, isnt it pretty brother?"_

_Dairn took it in his hands, careful not to damage it. "It is...It's really pretty Velly"_

_Suddenly the girl snatched it from is hands "Ye, well you cant have it. You pushed me into the water so your mean! I dont like mean people!"_

_"Awww please! Im really really sorry! Please please can i have it" The boy made a puppy dog face._

_"Weelll" She looked at her brother and relented, "F__ine, but promise you wont push me again!"_

_He gave her a hug "I promise!"_

_

* * *

_Once Dairn's vision cleared and his body regained it's composure he lowered himself to her height and looked her in the eyes, far from recoiling like he expected her to, the girl mouthed an 'Ohhh' before saying "Mista's lords's eyes cool!" Giggling with joy she wrapped her little arms around the Overlord laughing and squealing. Dairn hugged her back with a smile on his face.

"Gah, sire! That...That...Thing! It's so cute it's DISGUSTING!" Dairn could hear the minion master hurl at the sight.

Picking up the flower the girl dropped earlier he gently pushed her off him and offered it to her "Keep it little one" he said.

The girl took the flower and put it in her pocket "Me no ittle, me Lilia!" she said before running off somewhere.

"Is it gone master?" Gnarl asked a little shakily.

"Yes Gnarl, the scary little girl is gone" Dairn chuckled at Gnarl's expense.

"Master please try and refrain from showing me those...things!" Gnarl shivered at the thought of more happy, little children.

"Ah lord" Dairn turned to Doryn "That was Lilia Esthel, a very energetic girl. Her father was killed during a raid but the mother managed to hide herself and the girl, i beleive she has recovered"

"How many people were there before the bandits came?" Dairn asked as they went back to the village.

"There were about a hundred people but the bandits captured or killed forty over the years, we might not have enough people to work the fields and bring in as much as we used to but we have more than enough to feed ourselves" Doryn has a sad look in his eye, reminiscing those who lived.

"Can you take me to the graveyard?" Doryn nodded before the two went across a field and arrived at the graveyard.

The markers were stone and engraved, there were at least thirty arranged in rows. Dairn walked around for a bit before coming across something that made his blood go cold. It was a simple marker like all the others, what was engraved in it however...

"Here lies Derling Maar, husband of Eathin Harrow, father of Dairn Maar and Velita Maar

Killed by a bandit raid

May his soul rest with his family"

"Ahh, I knew Derling" Doryn spoke, making the Overlord jump but he did well to hide it "A good man he was, one of the first killed at the start of it all. He had such a spirit, always doing what was best for the village and his family"

"The graves of his children and wife, are the here?" Dairn asked, trying not to show the shakiness of his voice.

"Well yes, but we never found Valita's and Eathin's bodies. Dairn, the poor lad, was cut so badly he bled to death. We assumed the bandits threw the womens bodies in a ditch somewhere"

Dairn stayed silent, trying to calm the inferno that was his anger at the news. _"Later, i will kill later"_

The two left the graveyard and made their way back to the village, Dairn bid farewell to Doryn before going back to the netherworld and taking a short rest. He had killing to do this night.

* * *

Dairn along with his twenty minions were spying on the bandit camp just ahead. Unlike the previous one where the tents were scattered this one seemed a bit more organized, a large tent in the middle fenced off with what looked like ladders and the other tents in rows around it. The prisoner cage, again full of women and children, was next to the main tent. Dairn assumed it was to prevent escape, no one would be able to run without being caught or killed.

It looked to be a quite night, there was one main campfire with small ones outside the camp for the guards who were probably asleep. Dairn needed to strike and catch Dash before the man had the time to run. For now he had the element of surprise since these bandits did not seem to communicate with each other daily and he wanted to keep that advantage as long as possible. The bandits were milling about or using the women, children were walking around clearing up whatever rubbish there was in the camp, Dairn noted they were carefully avoiding any of the bandits.

_"Attacking now would put the prisoners at risk, i will have to wait until later tonight"_, The overlord made his way back to the small netherworld gate not far from the camp, meanwhile he ordered fifteen of his minions to split up into groups of five and position themselves around the camp. When he attacked Dairn hoped to do what he did last time, kill as many as he could silently and with the browns covering a wider area they would be able to do more damage.

Later that night, when the half-moon was near it's highest point, Dairn commenced his sneak attack. Silently he and his minions approached the sleeping guards. Dairn pulled out his sword and swung down on the mans neck, the blade only made it halfway through but Dairn pulled back roughly and sliced the head off. The life force drifted to his gauntlet as he continued towards the camp. The minions were approaching steadily, trying their best to kill quietly since the Overlord had beaten each and every one of them and promised more if they did not. Surprisingly they were doing well, Gnarl in all his time as minion master could count in one hand how many overlords disciplined their minions.

Blood flowed as another man was decapitated by Dairn's blade, his sixth kill, exiting the tent he moved silently over to the next one in the row. Inside were two sleeping bandits, one passed out with a bottle of alcohol in his hands. The minions all at once stabbed into one of the men's head while Dairn swung down and cut off the top of the other mans skull, the large lump of a brain rolled out of the open skull along with blood and life force.

"Ahhh!!" A man yelled from outside the tent, Dairn quickly ran outside and saw that a bandit with his left eye gouged out was running around and screaming in pain. Five browns ran and took him down but the damage had already been done, the camp was alerted and these bandits were not drunk. Recognizing the danger, Dairn immediately called his minions to his side. Whilst the bandits were still in confusion and disorganized, he made run for the main tent before Dash could get a far enough lead.

Dairn however was blocked by three men but he swept his minions forward to engage them, knocking one out of the way with his shield he continued his run. Out of the tent came a black-leather clad figure, he had a small frame and goggles on his eyes.

"Whats goin on 'ere den?!" He shouted.

"Were bein attacked sir!"

"Wha.." Before he could finish he spotted the Overlord vaulting the fence and coming straight for him. Panicking he turned around was was about to run but Harlond was waiting beside the tent, blade in hand he swiped at Dash's legs and the sword bit into the smaller mans knee. Screaming in pain Dash went down and Harlond stomped on his face sending him sprawling back into Dairn. The overlord grabbed Dash by the neck and hefted him up to eye level.

"Tell your men to surrender. NOW!" Dairn shouted, his eyes glowing that terrifying red and black making Dash shiver.

"Drop your weapons! By the gods drop your damn weapons!" The remaining bandits turned to their commander in confusion "DROP YOUR DAMN WEAPONS!" They complied and clangs were heard as the bandits layed down their arms.

"Gather your men in one spot and tell them not to move, else you pay dearly" Dairn threatened. Dash ordered his men to obey and they grouped together, there were about twenty five of them left. He turned to Harlond who stood waiting patiently for more orders. "Scout around and find routes to the capital and Erza's main base" The man bowed before leaving to do his duty.

Dairn ordered his minions, surprisingly none of which were dead, to gather the life force before it floated away.

Tightening his grip around Dash's neck, who by now stopped struggling, Dairn turned to the bandits. "I will make you an offer, if you join me i will give you riches far beyond what you can acquire by staying here. I am rich, very very rich. Each and every one of you will get enough to build a kingdom, buy as many women as you want and those riches will never stop flowing. Join me now if you desire all this and more"

The bandits seemed reluctant "You do not want what i offer you? Riches of an empire and women that would keep you satisfied far beyond your dreams? Very well then" He turned to leave but the bandits started going after him, tripping over each other to be the first to agree. Dairn grinned, though no one noticed except Dash but he kept his mouth shut.

"Gnarl" He spoke through his connection to the netherworld "Assemble the tower guards around the gate and tell them to subdue everyone that comes through"

Evil cackling could be heard "Brilliant master! I shall be waiting"

Turning back to the bandits, he told them to follow him to the netherworld gate. When they reached the gate he ordered only two men each to step on the pad. While the bandits, lead by their greed, walked to the gate Dairn set down Dash never relenting his iron grip on the bandit leader's throat. Once all twenty five stepped through Dairn dropped Dash and pinned him to the ground with his foot. Pointing his right arm at the man Dairn unleashed his evil presence spell and a few painful (for Dairns ears) seconds later he stopped.

Stepping back the overlord looked down at his new servant "Step on the pad and tell Gnarl everything you know about your 'Boss'"

Cloudy eyes looked up at him "Yes master"

Going back to the camp Dairn ordered his minions to scavenge any and all usable equipment. The minions set about gathering supplies and weapons the bandits had.

"HEY! Sir! Please! Over here!" A female voice screamed. _"I totally forgot about them..."_ Dairn thought, a little embarrassed at his forgetfulness. Heading for the prisoner cage he unstrapped his shield and used it to break the lock. A figure lunged at him and hugged him.

"Thank you, thank you so much sir!" The woman cried, she was a brunette with her hair cut short to her shoulders. The other prisoners were eager to get out and be free once again, like last time tears were streaming down their eyes and they were yelling with joy.

Taking the woman off him he addressed the group "Take me to your village, i must speak to your mayor"

The woman who hugged him took his hand which, Dairn noticed, was a bit scarred "I am the mayors daughter, Liryn , please come with me hero sir, i'll take you to my mother!"

Liryn, with strength that surprised Dairn, dragged him along towards the village. They were followed by the other prisoners who were also eager to get back to their home and families. Getting a look at the village Dairn saw the Harlond was correct in his report. Behind the village was a large open stone mine that supplied the villagers with their livelihood, they would probably trade the stone with other villages to get food.

The gates opened and men, women and children ran out to reunite with their family members. A woman who looked about forty headed straight for Liryn, once she reached the girl the woman gave her an enormous hug. "Thank Hestia, Hera and Zeus! You are safe! My daughter is safe!"(2)

Once the two had separated Liryn introduced Dairn. "Mother, this is...Oops" Liryn bit her bottom lip, embarrassed.

"Who Liryn?" Her mother prompted, looking at Dairn with a suspicious eye.

"Well, he is the hero that saved us...but i forgot to ask his name. Hehe" Liryn scratched the back of her head.

Dairn chuckled "It is alright. I am Dairn ma'am, a traveling swordsman. I come with an offer for you, if you wish to listen"

The mayor reached out a hand and Dairn shook it, she had a happy smile on her face. "Of course good sir, I am Aelin, Liryn's mother. Please come with me to the town hall, i will discuss with you there"

The three made their way to the town hall, every step of the way Liryn was bouncing with joy and dancing around. The vilage was different to Basin in some ways, the houses for example were built on the far end nearer the mine. There were also two blacksmiths, again near the mine. The storehouse was, like Basin's, built next to the town hall. The town square was larger than Basin's, probably because they needed the space for the cut stone and rock. Dairn did not get to see the rest of the village as he was lead inside the town hall by Liryn's mother, Liryn herself having been told to go home and rest.

Once inside, the doors were shut and the candles lit. Outside the moonlight shined through the open windows and a small breeze wafted in. "I cannot thank you enough Dairn sir, please ask us what you want and we will try our best to get it for you, we are not in the best of shape but we owe you so much for saving our families" Aelin said turning to him.

"I ask your loyalty to me as your lord"

Aelin was dumbstruck "Wh...What?"

"Margos has been divided by Erza and Gard, bandits terrorize at will and no one is safe. All this im sure you know already?"

"Ye..Yes. But what does it have to do with...your offer?"

"Neither Gard nor Erza have enough power to completely destroy each other and unite the country, however if there was a third man backing one of them it may just tip the balance."

Aelin took a seat on a bench to steady herself, here was a man proposing he would help unite their country and bring peace. Or maybe he would rule like Gard, as a tyrant. "What can a little mining village do? We are not fighters. You may have saved us but...This is too much.."

Dairn took a seat across the woman "I will not ask you to fight, I will do that myself"

Aelin looked at him like he had grown a second head "How can one man fight against an army!? Besides, even if you do have the power how will i know you will not be a tyrant like Gard? How will i know my village will be kept safe?"

Darin smiled "You will just have to take my word for it"

"That does not make it any better!"

"You have two choices, either swear your loyalty to me and I will keep you safe. Or you could deny my offer and have bandits come knocking at your door again" Dairn did not speak harshly but Aelin could see the truth, he was right. There was no way the village could defend itself and though the villagers trusted her, she could not guarantee their safety alone.

She sighed "I...will need to discus this with the rest of the village. Please rest if you like, i think we all need to"

Dairn walked over to an empty spot in the building, suddenly the earth crumbled away as Grubber dug a netherworld gate. Aelin who was walking behind gasped in shock. "Once you have decided, just step on this pad and it will take you to me. Good night ma'am" With that the overlord stepped through and in a flash of blue light, vanished.

Aelin stood there still in shock "A..Amazing..."

* * *

**(1)- Erza Scarlet is a character in the manga Fairy Tail, search on google is you want a picture**

**Hope you enjoyed the story. For any questions please leave a review and i will reply.**

**Was it good? Why?**

**Do i write well? Why?**

**Should i just stop writing and hang myself? Why?**

**Any and all suggestions are welcome and appreciated!  
**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello to anyone who reads the AN! im sorry for the late chapter, this can be attributed mostly for my laziness but going on an all night drinking spree to celebrate your 16th birthday on Saturday does have an effect. Enjoy the story!  
**

* * *

**Rise of the Lord**

The prisoners were bound and gathered on a large floating platform, like the one that acted as a transport from the throne room to the forge, only this one was big enough to accommodate at least fifty people. Dairn however was on the main tower, he still was not accustomed to the moving platforms of rock and would most likely end up on the floor with his hands holding on to the edge. He had created the floating platform out of magical rock to put the captured bandits in since the throne room was too small.

The prisoners themselves had long since stopped struggling, with every move they made a smack to the face would follow. Dairn looked at them with unguarded hatred, his few fragmented memories fueling his rage for such people. Dairn turned to Gnarl and nodded, the minion master ordered the minion guards to bring forth one of the men. The chosen man struggled but was smacked several times as he was brought over to Dairn.

He looked at the man with his black and red eyes "You are pieces of trash and filth that deserve the worst death imaginable, i should just tip this piece of rock and send you all in the fiery depths!" The bandits were shaking in fear, some looking down at the bottom where a ocean of magma awaited them. "But no, i will be a benevolent lord and give you a chance. From now on you shall be my slaves, bound to me and me alone!" Raising his hand, Dairn activated his evil presence spell and cast it on the man in front of him. The man screamed in pain until Dairn let him go.

Throughout the rest of the night Dairn destroyed and rebuilt the minds of the ones he captured, forcing his will into them and making them his servants. Once all were enslaved Dairn expanded the platform and formed his servants in rows, he then armed them with weapons and told them to fight and train against each other until they passed out from exhaustion. Dairn himself went back to sit on his throne, he needed to know what Dash had told the minion master about this 'Boss'.

"Well sire" Started Gnarl "It seems this 'Boss' is named Gareth, a self proclaimed bandit king. He controls at least two hundred bandits, well a hundred now since you came around. Anyway, Gareth is in control of Woodrough and that appears to be his main base. Gareth himself is a good fighter, sorry to say more experienced than you my lord and at your current level he would kill you. Also, his bandits are not going to run like the ones you have faced. They will fight and fight hard to defend their king"

Dairn let out a frustrated sigh "How am i supposed to kill him then?"

"By doing what you seem to do best" Gnarl replied like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Dairn looked at the old minion with a raised eyebrow "What i do best?"

"Surprise attack sire, you may not be the best but all attacks you have committed so far have been done at night and silently. A great achievement i might add since you have no greens. For a complete layout of the bandit base you must wait for Verge and his report so we can plan"

Suddenly the main gate activated and Verge materialized in a flash of blue light, Gnarl looked at him with his mouth agape "Well, we didnt have to wait long for that..."

After taking some time to steady himself, Verge bowed to his master "Master, i have found a place for a netherworld gate inside both the town and the surrounding forest. Unlike Thag, Gareth has taken over the town and the villagers have mostly all been captured and some had been sold to slavery. Others are being used as slaves themselves. The town has wooden walls with bandits patrolling it, there are also two watch towers keeping a lookout. This makes it difficult to attack with the element of surprise.

Gareth is getting suspicious about Thag's inactivity and later this day he will send out some scouts to check the village, when he finds out Thag and his men are dead he will most likely annihilate the village seeing it as a threat to his power and control."

Gnarl rubbed his hands together in glee "Perfect! If we capture them we can give Gareth false information and lure him out to a trap where we can cripple his forces"

Dairn went into a thinking pose "We will need to plan an ambush to destroy Gareth and his men" He looked at Verge "Which path will Gareth most likely take if he attacks?"

Verge thought for a moment "The main road between the two villages, it will take him eight hours to reach Basin"

"Anything that might help if we were to ambush?"

"The forest of Woodrough spreads until halfway down the road, then there is a lake and after that it is open grassland until you get to the farming fields of Basin"

Dairn went back to thinking "Hmmm, we can use the use the woods as cover and arm the bandit slaves with bows from Basin. We must draw the bandits further into the woods, where we will set up traps to neutralize as many as we can. Me and the minions will attack hidden amongst the trees and sow confusion, the archers will attack with us.

Ideally the best time for such an ambush would be night, the enemy will not see much in the darkness of the woods"

Gnarl cackled "A very good plan sire, though we must make sure we kill Gareth early or else he may rally them together"

Dairn sighed "Yes, how though i dont know. I hope he falls for one of the traps since if he does not i cannot engage him in one on one combat and win, we must think of another way to bring him down"

"You might not need to sire, during the ambush if we can isolate him he will be easy to swarm with minions" Gnarl suggested.

"That could work, along with myself and the minions Gareth will not survive" Dairn rose from his throne "It is finalized then. Verge, go back to the village and try and be one of the scouts Gareth is going to send, when you reach the fields capture or kill the others with you and return to me. We will wait until the moon rises until you go back and tell Gareth that Thag has been killed"

"Yes my lord" Verge gave a bow and left through the gate. Dairn also stepped on the gate right after the bandit left, he told Gnarl to get one of Basin's minion guards to acquire the village's bows and arrows and have the bandit slaves train in them before leaving.

* * *

The nearby forest animals scattered as a blue light shined from the netherworld gate, from the light Dairn stepped out. Summoning thirty of his minions he made his way to the road nearby. To the right side of the road he could see the watchtowers of the bandit base and Dairn went back into the trees, lest he was spotted. Following the road away from the camp for at least two hours he stopped when he could no longer see the towers.

Turning around he could see his minions looking at him. He bent down and used his free arm to feel the soil _"The soil is still hard from the winter, digging pits will be too slow without proper tools" _Standing back up he addressed his minions "All of you but three shall go out in the forest and find anything that can be sharpened into stakes, cut down branches if you have to, then plant the stakes in the ground around this area. Three of you will go back down the road and watch for any bandits approaching, I want this done fast so move!"

The minions having received their orders scattered to obey, sticks and twigs were sharpened and planted in the ground in a scattered pattern as the minions set about their work. Dairn sped things up by climbing up the trees and cutting down branches, his shield was left on the ground to stop it hindering him. The trees were not particularly large but most of them topped off at sixteen feet, the tallest were twenty feet.

They worked until mid day cutting down wood, sharpening them and planting the stakes. Dairn looked up from where he was sitting to find that all the scout minions were running towards him.

"Master!" They all greeted "Humans coming!"

Immediately Dairn ordered his minions to hide as he himself crouched behind a tree. A few minutes of silence later three bandits came in view, two of them unfamiliar but Dairn recognized Verge by his chestnut hair cut short and a disfiguring scar that marred the left side of his face just under the mans eye. Silently he let them pass without interruption and soon the three walked out of sight.

"Get back to work" He ordered.

* * *

It was dusk now, the fading sun casting a dazzling orange on the sky. Although by the black cloud that was coming up fast there was going to be a rainy night. Dairn and his minions had planted a field of stakes at least fifty feet further into the forest and along the road, there were five paths into the forest through the stakes for the archers to run through without being injured. The thirty minions were just behind the stake field preparing to jump on anyone who managed to cross it.

Verge had killed the other scouts a few hours ago when they reached Basin's farming fields. The spy was now running towards the bandit camp to draw out Gareth and his forces. Behind a tree Dairn could hear the foot steps of someone running and a few minutes later Verge sped past panting and taking in haggard breaths. The overlord beckoned up his bandit archers to take position, soon it would all start.

Two hours had passed by in silence since Verge had run past, the nocturnal animals that would have been making the forest seem alive were all silent, as if they were not even there. The minions and bandit archers were silent as they were ordered, Dairn himself said nothing letting the time pass by like eternity. The storm cloud that was seen earlier had now arrived over their heads and it was now just sprinkling, however Dairn new with such dark clouds there was going to be heavy rain throughout the night.

Noise jerked Dairn's head up, rattles, foot steps and voices came from the road. The bandits were here. Holding torches they made their way along in a line. Up at front was an imposing man, standing 5'10 wearing leather armour and wielding a short sword and a round wooden shield. His sight was not really much different than the other bandits but it was his aura that made Dairn focus on him. It was an aura that inspired fear and obedience form followers. This was Gareth.

Silently Dairn made his way through one of the paths through the stake field, the archers had notched their arrows and were aiming at the front. There was tense silence before halfway through the path Dairn banged his shield and sword together, the signal received the archers let loose. The whistling of arrows and a few seconds later the cries of injured men could be heard as the archers launched their first volley. Immediately they let loose a second time, then a third and a final fourth before Gareth ordered his men to attack their positions.

There were cries of pain and wails of agony from those injured by the arrows but they soon joined by the men who ran across the stake field, impaling their feet in sharp sticks. The sprinkling of rain was now heavier impeding the sight of men and with the darkness of the forest visibility was low. The archers had run past Dairn and his minions, had taken positions behind and started firing their arrows, although it was no longer as effective due to the sight and rain.

Dairn gripped his blade tighter, moving shadows approached in front of him. Some were falling over and falling into stakes whilst those behind used the fallen one's body as a walkway trampling over them. Finally one man managed to make it through without being injured and Dairn made a leap from behind a tree smacking the bandit back into the stakes with his shield. The man cried out in pain as several stakes impaled him but remarkably he was still alive.

Dairn ignored him though as another man made it through and went for the overlord. Dairn quickly blocked with his sword but the wight of the one handed axe the man was wielding shook his arm. Pulling back to avoid a blow from another axe Dairn surged forward and barged into the bandit with his shield knocking him over, he quickly finished off the downed man with a slice through the head. Blood splashed on him but was washed away by the rain, the mans life force was taken quickly.

The minions were fighting with as much vigor and joy as normal. One bandit got through the stakes to engage the creatures, he swung for a minion but the minion dodged it and another one came behind and stabbed the ban in the leg. The bandit dropped and tried to get up but the two minions took several swipes across his head killing him. They ignored the life force for now since they were ordered to focus on killing, something that made them extremely happy.

Shouts, cries and the sound of steel on steel pierced Dairn's ears as he fought another man. This one had a short sword and a buckler and showed some skill in their use. He blocked Dairn's over head blow and went in to stab but was blocked by the hoplon in return, he rolled to the left but hit a tree. Dairn swiped his sword but cut into wood instead of flesh as the man jumped back. Blocking another blow Dairn pulled back and let the man advance on him, avoiding a hit from the buckler Dairn jumped forward and head-butted his opponent sending him reeling back. Dairn went for another downward swipe and this time the blade bit deep into the man's shoulder as he cried in pain, twisting before pulling out Dairn chopped off the bandit's right arm with another strike. The man screamed but was silenced as Dairn ran his sword through him and yanked out his blade along with the mans life force.

Taking time to steady himself Dairn could feel through his connection to the netherworld that the minions were beginning to take casualties. It was like lights were being turned off inside his head. Running towards the main source of this problem he found it was Gareth that was killing his minions, the bandit leader showed surprising grace and the fluidity of his motions were a fine example of how skilled he was. Dairn hesitated, he needed to stop Gareth from killing his minions so he would not be swarmed but there was a tinkle of dread within him. His opponent was more skilled and Dairn would most likely die.

_"No, hesitation will kill me. I must do this!"_ Gathering as much courage as he could the overlord joined his minions in battle against Gareth. The bandit leader kicked away a minion before blocking Dairns swing, his wooded shield splintered but held as he pulled back and assessed the new threat. Dairn looked menacing in the black night, a shadowy figure with one red glowing eye glaring at Gareth. The bandit leader though was not to be frightened so easily, he stood his ground and glared back.

Calling over some minions Dairn attacked. Their two blades clashed but Dairn's larger broadsword pushed Gareth back a bit, the latter smacked away a minion with his shield before clashing swords again. The trees limited their mobility, there would be no rolling around and dodging, just head on contact. Gareth ducked a swing from Dairn and if not for a minion in the way he would have gone for Dairn's open right side. He punched the minion away as the overlord swung down with his blade.

Dairn's blade connected but the shield absorbed the blow, quickly Gareth lunged with his blade. Dairn did not manage to move his body in time and the blade connected, though the minion armor absorbed most of the force the tip went quite a way in and Dairn felt a sting of pain. He jumped back and a bit of blood spurted out of the hole in his armour.

Gareth attacked again and Dairn parried his blade. Unexpectedly Dairn didnt pull back to attack but instead he rushed forward intending to barge Gareth with his shield. Gareth however had enough room to sidestep the shield and thrusted for Dairn's unprotected right shoulder, the blade pierced the pauldron and Dairn's shoulder, the latter grunted in pain before stumbling forward and regaining balance by slamming into a tree.

"You do not seem like a skilled fighter" Gareth commented, his voice mocking.

Dairn responded with a roar and attacked, Gareth blocked the blade but due to the wight was again pushed back a little. Dairn pulled back and swung again and again relentlessly, never letting Gareth make a move other than block. The bandit leader's shield splintered and cracked after every hit until finally it split. Dairn saw his chance and swung for the exposed Gareth but infuriatingly his sword was parried. However, the force of that blow sent vibrations through Gareth's arm and he nearly dropped his sword.

Dairn stood trying to steady his panting breaths, putting that much strength in his blows drained him. Gareth was faring little better, his shield arm was numb and his sword arm was shaking. Around them the battle still raged on in the pouring rain, screams of anger and agony mingled with the clashing of steel to form a concoction of chaos.

The surviving four minions who joined Dairn now took their chance to pounce on Gareth. The bandit in his state could still hold them off and even kill one of them but Dairn rushed in, forgetting his shield and blade to tackle Gareth into a tree. Gareth felt the air rush out of him and his back aching as Dairn cocked back a fist and punched him in the face. The bandit still held his blade however and used it to stab Dairn's leg, with nothing but cloth in the way the blade sank through flesh and bone.

"Master!" The minions cried, they attacked Gareth with more ferocity than ever to keep him of their overlord.

Dairn fell back screaming onto a root as he tried to pull out the blade inside his leg. By now the battle was nearing an end, the bandits were reduced to fifteen men with most wounded in the stake field, the minions numbered at twenty and the bandit slaves twenty as well. The bandits were on their last leg, they were exhausted and fighting at night made them fight blind, to make matters worse the minions were still packed with energy and could go on for longer.

Gareth however was too pre-occupied with fighting off three minions. He blocked one and kicked away another, the third received a cut across the face. He turned around only to be smacked hard by something metal, Dairn had pulled the blade out but didn't dare put much weight into the leg. with Gareth stumbling back he tripped over a root and Dairn leaped upon him with his minions joining in. Gareth tried as hard as he could to parry the minions blades but Dairn was relentlessly smacking him across the face, forcing him to drop his sword and block the iron fists.

The minions stabbed and hacked away at Gareth's legs and one blade cut into his testicles. Screaming in agonizing pain Gareth never saw Darin grab an axe off a minion and swing down on his face. His forehead split open as blood poured out of the crack, swinging one last time with all his remaining strength Dairn cut Gareth's head in half.

The battle was over, the bandits had been defeated and none would survive to see the morning sun. Dairn got up off Gareth's corpse and leaned on a tree to avoid putting weight on his leg. His stab wounds were burning and he felt exhausted.

"Rest sire, Grubber has dug a gate nearby and the minions will take you to the tower. Equipment and life force will be scavenged as usual" Gnarl said. Breathing deeply Dairn let his exhaustion take him and soon he drifted off to sleep with the minions carrying him.

* * *

_"Owwww" The boy whined. Dairn held his scraped leg as his mother tried to clean it by wiping with a damp cloth._

_"What did i tell you!" His mother said exasperated, unconsciously she put more pressure than she intended to which resulted in Dairn screaming in pain._

_"Brother shut up! Your screaming is annoying me!" Velita said from beside the two. She had a small cut on her right arm and their father was trying to bandage it up._

_Dairn gave a 'hmph' before whining as his mother went back to cleaning his wound again. "Honestly Dairn, Velly, you two should be more careful!" Eathin scolded her children._

_"It was his/her fault!" Both siblings pointed at each other._

_"No it wasn't!" Both said in unison._

_"Stop copying me!" _

_"Quite both of you please!" Derling said exasperated "You two should have been twins with the way you both speak" Firmly but gently tying the last knot on the bandage he helped Velita off the chair. "Though if you were then we had clearly angered some god"_

_Eathing finished cleaning the wound and was now drying it up before wrapping it in a cotton bandage. "It was her fault! She tripped me and i fell into a rock!" Dairn glared at his sister, though in his mothers opinion it did look more cute than scary._

_Velita stuck her tongue out at him "Thats because you pushed me into a tree!"_

_"You threw a pebble in my eye!"_

_"You done the same with a twig!"_

_"You-" _

_"ENOUGH!" Both parents shouted, Eathin looked at the two siblings with annoyance "Seeing as you two dont seem to get along as brother and sister you two will help carry water, harvest the crops AND clean out the 'pit'"_

_The siblings, eyes wide, ran up to their mother and apologized profusely. Neither wanted to do pit duty. Unnoticed though was their fathers smirk _"Hehehe, you are such a good parent my love" _he thought._

_

* * *

_Dairn awoke near mid-day, the netherworld had already healed his injuries but there was still a numb feeling, especially in his leg. Getting up off his throne he turned to Gnarl. "How did it go, the ambush?"

Gnarl grinned "It went excellently sire, the bandits were all killed and not much loss on your side. Not that it matters anyway, there are always more minions. I have to commend you sire, you fought Gareth like a fierce beast, though there were times when you had me worried"

Dairn nodded, walking over to the gate he said "Get more minions on the repairs, i want it done by the end of today" With that he vanished.

Arriving at the gate nearest Woodrough Dairn summoned thirty minions. All now had at least leather armour and some had shields that were taken from the night before, they were starting to look like an army. They followed the overlord as he walked the road to the village, the rain had stopped but the trees were still wet and there was the occasional puddle here and there. Overlord and minions soon entered the village gates and found the place empty except for the prisoner cages where there were at least forty people, all women and children.

"Help! Please help us!" They all called out as they saw him.

Dairn ordered his minions to scavenge the place and for Grubber to open up a gate. He meanwhile broke the locks and set the prisoners free, most jumped out of the cage into freedom, some though walked out timidly as if this was all a joke and the bandits would come back. Dairn left them to celebrate, trying as best he could to avoid being hugged.

He entered the town hall where it had been converted into a treasury/bedroom, he assumed it was for Gareth. There were three chests filled with copper and silver coins, though there were some gold near the bed. The bed itself was king sized with large pillows and sheets. "The dead wont be needing this anymore" he murmured before assigning several minions to carry it back to the netherworld. There was another interesting thing though, a small stone statue of a dragon head with a light ember in it's mouth.

"Thats the fireball spell stone sire! Get it and you will be able to set fire anyone or anything that bothers you!" Gnarl shouted. The minions took the stone back to the gate. He searched the nearby desk and found a handful of jewelry and more interestingly, a record book of the slaves sold.

Picking up the book Dairn skimmed through the names and prices next to them. As he continued to read though his eyes widened and his heart missed several beats "Eathin Harrow, sold for five silver. Purchaser;Theron" His voice was a whisper and he didnt even notice a tear go down his face. With shaking hands he skimmed some more before coming across another name "Velita Maar, sold for twelve silver. Purchaser;Theron"

He had mixed reactions, on one hand his mother and sister were still alive but on the other they were slaves, who knows what had been done to them. Swallowing the lump in his throat Dairn left the town hall. Outside he was met with the crowd of freed villagers. One woman stood in front of them, she had bruising everywhere and a couple of cuts as well, her brown hair was wild and messy and she wore a cloth dress with tears in it.

She seemed to swallow before speaking in a shaky voice "Thank you sir for saving us, we could never thank you enough. I am May, the mayors daughter"

Dairn looked at her, she noticeably took a step back when she saw the mismatched eyes "You dont need to thank me, though there is one thing i will ask, well two actually"

"What is it sir?"

"I want to know who Theron is"

She flinched at the mention of the name "Theron is..is a bandit lord that works for Gard. He bought most of our men and some women too"

"Thank you, now i musk ask another thing. Your loyalty to me as your lord"

She gasped before shaking in fear, Dairn saw this and tried to calm her worries "Dont worry, i am not like Gareth or Theron or any bandits. I will not ask anything of you that you cannot provide. In fact, i want to make a deal with you"

"Wh..What?"

"I will find Theron and free your men, when i do you will swear your loyalty to me. Do you accept"

May tired to hold back tears at the prospect of having her father and brother back "I...I accept"

Dairn nodded "Good, for now though i suggest you all to rest. My...pets will see to the rebuilding of your village"

She nodded and said thanks before going off to tell the rest of the people the news.

* * *

Dairn left Woodrough with twenty minion guards who were to help re-build the village and get rid of any bandit belongings. The money was transported to the private chambers along with the bed and desk where the slave record book resided. Dairn left the villagers enough supplies to feed themselves while taking some for himself, now he had a army of near enough a hundred minions, though he could only summon thirty.

"Why is that Gnarl" He asked the minion master.

"What sire?"

"Why is it that i can only control thirty minions but i have over a hundred life force?"

"Well, in the netherworld you can summon as many as you like because of the amount of dark energy in here. The outside though does not have that much dark energy which the minions need to survive. It's a reason why they and you dont need to eat as well, the dark energy sustains the life of dark creatures like yourself and the minions. There are a few ways you can increase the amount of minions you control though sire"

"Like what?"

"The netherworld tower used to have a lot of minion stones that fed dark energy right into the minions, they support more minion life on the outside where dark energy isnt in plentiful amounts(1). Though since the last overlord died most of the stones were lost or stolen by heroes who managed to open up the netherworld gates, there are other ways but i cant remember now(2)"

The noticeable blue light indicated activation of the gate, when the light sent out unexpectedly the mayor of Hardrock, Aelin, stood there shakily on her feet. "Whoa, i feel a bit woozy" She soon steadied herself and faced the overlord sitting on his throne. He looked terrifying and imposing, with a tower filled with lava behind him being held inside by black metal on the sides and what looked like a dragon head in the center, the lava flowed like a small river around the throne, down the steps then filling the crevices lighting up the shapes of minions and dragons and other creatures.

Aelin was astounded and awed by it all, so much so she had to be brought back by Darin scraping his throat. She blinked owlishly for a moment "Oh sorry" She cleared her throat "Me and the villagers have discussed your proposal and...we have accepted, only on the terms that you will treat us fairly and honor your promise of keeping us safe"

Dairn nodded "I swear i will protect you and be a just ruler, on my word you can trust"

Aelin smiled a kindly smile and bowed "Thank lord". Looking around for a bit she said "Ummm, how does thing thing work?"

* * *

**(1) Like an oxygen tank or a life support machine**

**(2) Reader advice is WANTED!!!**

**Again i am sorry for the late chapter but Thanks for reading and please review anyways.**

**How good is my writing? Any advice?**

**Do you like the story so far? Why?**

**Am i astoundingly handsome? **

**If your someone who thinks i should stop writing and hang myself, what kind of rope and how far away from the ground?  
**

**Any questions leave a review and i will answer as best i can.  
**

**Am i astoundingly handsome? **


	4. Chapter 4

**Hello to anyone who reads the AN! Sorry for the late chapter but please review anyway!  
**

* * *

**Rise of the Lord**

She sat alone at the head of the table, her black eyes gazing over maps of troop positions and bandit locations. She looked deadly yet beautiful with long red hair that flowed freely down her back, her body covered in plate armour sculpted for a woman with beautiful designs of roses. The look on her face however, screamed strictness and promised pain if you angered her in any way. The sword and shield next to her were equally beautiful and deadly, the blade was a steel two sided longsword and engraved with roses and thorns that seemed to curl around it like vines. The shield was a heater shield with a dark red rose acting as a coat of arms.

This woman of twenty three was Erza Scarlet, a celebrated general of Margos. To her people she was a guardian angel, defending them from darkness and casting a bright light for their future. To her enemies though she was the Bloody Rose, her appearance and the skill of her sword made her an object of fear to anyone who opposed her. There were even stories of whole Empire legions surrendering or retreating in fear because they heard she and her special Knights of the Rose were in battle.

She was a brilliant governor and commander, having been at the forefront of Margos's economic development before the Empire invasion. Her personality though made anyone she commanded wary of her wrath, she expected all of her subjects to obey her without protest and question, often her hard-line attitude and strict rules and regimes pushed her soldiers to breaking point. She does however have a great sense of justice which is one of the reasons the people love her.

Currently though she was agitated, to the west further inland one of her spies had reported that the bandit activity there had been halted due to unforeseen circumstances. She demanded to be told everything and the spy with the information was too slow for he liking. Suddenly the door to her study was opened by one of Knights of the Rose. On his head was a steel Corinthian helmet engraved with roses and vines and plate armour also engraved with roses and vines adorned his body. On his side was a steel longsword of good quality and his shield was strapped to his back.

"There is a messenger here to see you ma'am" With that he bowed his head and let in a exhausted looking woman.

Erza looked at her with barely hidden annoyance "Speak quickly!" She barked.

The woman straightened her posture before speaking "Ma'am the bandits that controlled Basin, Woodrough and Hardrock have all been killed"

Erza leaned forward in her seat "That is...unexpected, tell me more"

She took a breath "A strange looking man named Dairn and his odd pets have claimed lordship over Basing and Hardrock after killing all the bandit forces in the area along with Gareth, the bandit leader. He seems to have ambushed the camps controlling Basin and Hardrock during night-time and crushed a force of one hundred in the forest of Woodrough, also during night time. I checked the site of battle and he seemed to have used stakes planted on the ground, the bandits didnt see them and thus were reduced in number before engaging Dairn. The corpse of Gareth was among the dead"

Erza contemplated this odd situation. She had a potential ally she could make use of or the man might be just another bandit exploiting her people. "There is another thing ma'am" The messenger interrupted her thoughts "Dairn has offered to free the prisoners Theron bought from the area and in exchange he wants lordship over Woodrough"

"Why is he doing this though?" Erza asked

"I do not know ma'am, he just came out of no-where and killed the bandits. The people seem to see him as a hero and he has yet to do a thing to discourage that"

Erza sighed and rubber her tired eyes, she had yet to sleep and it was the middle of the night. "He wants to kill Theron then, I want to eliminate that bandit leader myself so send a message to him saying i have heard of his activities and would like to talk to him. Do not reveal yourself"

The woman bowed and left quickly leaving Erza to think about this new occurrence.

* * *

The private chambers of the Netherworld tower was now fully repaired and had a bed, something that pleased Dairn quite a lot. Where there was once crumbling walls were now beautifully polished black stone and there were even small statues of minions wearing full battle gear dotted around. All in all it looked completely different from the crumbling wreck it once was. The overlord had now begun construction on an armoury because of all the raided equipment being gathered the forge was not going to be enough to store all the weapons and other war items.

First Dairn made a solid platform linking the base of the armoury to the main tower, then he manipulated the magical rock to form rough walls for the sides, back and the roof. With his part done he ordered the construction crew minions to fix up the armoury and move all the weapons that were scavenged to the room, the construction would take at the most two days to finish.

Harlond had come back after finding a route to the capital city and fortunately the location of Theron's base as well whilst Erza's main base had yet to be found. Dairn was impatient to get to Theron but Gnarl urged the overlord to find information about Theron's base first, reluctantly he ordered both Harlond and Dash to infiltrate Theron's base and try and find a place to open up a gate as well as the number of forces stationed there. Verge, who went back to the tower before the forest battle, was given command of all the bandit slaves and ordered to search the country for any tower objects or anything of value.

Currently Dairn was on a stable platform throwing fireballs at random directions to get some anxiety out of him, he really could not wait to get his family back. Unfortunately, for Quaver anyway, a stray fireball hit the jester and sent him screaming and rolling on the ground trying to put the hot flames out. The nearby minion guards subtly tried to hide behind anything that would protect them from their masters blind rage.

"You must calm down sire, your aggression should be focused on the enemy" Gnarl tried to reason with Dairn from behind one of the walls.

An audible "boom" was his reply as another fireball was hurled randomly. "That bastard has my mother and sister Gnarl!" He stared shouting "I want to kill him! To mutilate him! To cut him open and cook his insides! I want him to feel PAIN!" Another loud boom. "I will slaughter them all! Every single person that touched them I will cut to pieces, their hands, their feet, their arms, their legs! I will carve my name into their faces with a fork!" Everything went silent as the overlord ended his spew of anger, though Gnarl did like all of what was said.

Coming out of his cover the minion master took a look at the overlord, and stopped in his tracks. Dairn was breathing hard, salivating with fury but there was more. His black and red eyes were absolutely glowing with animalistic rage, far more than any other time before. A shadow seemed to hang over him in the shape of of a dragon head, then the shadow opened it's mouth and Dairn ROARED. This was no normal roar of an angered human, this was something far far more deadlier.

Dairn seemed to have calmed down after that, but his eyes were still emitting a dull glow. _What was that?_ He thought, for a moment he let his mind and body be overwhelmed by his rage and.....he remembered nothing about it. It was as if it didn't happen at all. He looked at Gnarl who had his mouth hanging "What happened?"

Gnarl didnt answer straight away so Dairn asked him again. "We...Well, you were throwing around fireballs and generally venting out some rage" The minion master neglected to mention the dragon shadow in fear of it returning, Gnarl had somewhat of a hunch as to why it appeared but it was just a hunch. Dairn looked at him as if he knew there was something more but let it pass.

Both walked back into the central throne room of the tower just in time to witness the arrival of May, the girl looked a bit better than before, wearing a plain white dress and hair now neat and flowing to her shoulders. Some bruising was gone and Dairn could see bandages over the cuts. Though her appearance changed, her nervousness didnt, apparent by the way she held her head down and nibbled on her fingers.

"Uhmm...Well, sir, uhm uhm, well a..a messenger was sent out to lady Erza right after you left yesterday and...and a reply came back" She stuttered out.

"What does she want?" Dairn asked

"She..she wants to meet you sir"

Dairn nodded, he needed to get out to forget his family troubles for now. Stepping on to the platform he grabbed hold of a shaking May and activated the gate to Woodrough. Arriving at the village he saw four armour clad soldiers on horseback with another riderless horse. They spotted him and trotted over.

"Sir Dairn, the lady Erza demands your presence quickly. We are here to escort you to her" One soldier said.

"Sire, it is best not to summon any minions until you get there. They may be hardy but they cannot keep up with horses" Gnarl said.

"Very well" Dairn replied

* * *

The ride towards the coastal base was not exactly comfortable for Dairn. The overlord having no experience with horses before needed several tries before he could even get on the horse and stay on, though he did try and look as dignified as possible when riding, tried being the key word. It was like going on on of the moving platforms in the netherworld, Dairn held on to the saddle as hard as he could while straightening his back and looking dignified, his thighs also stuck themselves to the saddle in an almost painful manner.

Once they arrived Dairn nearly fell off the horse in his eagerness to get off it. The horse was also as eager, shaking and a little thrashing around to get it'd useless rider off. The coastal village they were in carried the refreshing sea breeze, the houses were built inland to avoid the rising tides but the buildings closer to the water were built on stilt-like platforms. There were fishing boats both old and broken and new dotted about the shore along with fishing nets bot small and large. Some were being repaired by the women, children and men who weren't out fishing for whatever reason. There were also boats further out to sea but were still visible.

It was a great hub of activity, something Dairn was unused to as the other villages he saw back inland were not as busy or active. It was peaceful here, the people could freely travel along the coast in relative safety with Erza's men patrolling the roads, though there was the occasional bandit most were afraid to go near.

There was a large building where smoke seemed to be flowing out, Dairn assumed it was where they smoked the fish. There were more soldiers here as well, men clad in armour wielding swords, axes and pikes, Erza's heavy infantry. A couple of archers and some crossbow men were stationed on the walls looking out for danger. There were also men clad in light studded leather armour wielding a mace and a round wooden shield, the light infantry. Finally there were a few men on horseback, the heavy cavalry. To Dairn it seemed like Erza's main body was here but in reality it was just a small fraction, about three hundred men altogether.

The overlord was escorted to an out of the way house in the village, it was barely noticeable and no one would assume it was used as a command post. Once inside the house Dairn was asked if he could hand over his weapons for repairs as a show of courtesy, more likely it was to disarm him. Having no choice he complied anyway.

The inside was well lit with the windows shining light through, there was a long central table with benches on the sides. At the head of the table was Erza herself. Dairn felt a little apprehension at meeting her, he had been warned by the guards earlier that her temper was as red as her hair. She was dressed in steel armour like the ones the heavy infantry had but hers was crafted for a woman and was engraved with roses and vines. Erz'as sword and shield were on the table in front of her, the same rose designs as her armour on both.

"Ah, you are early. Good" She looked pleased "I have heard about your recent exploits with the bandits, I must say I am surprised and a tad impressed. Crushing a force of a hundred by yourself though does seem a little far-fetched, you must of had some help?"

Dairn nodded "My pets are intelligent creatures, very resilient as well"

"Interesting, you must tell me about them later. For now though I must know, why?"

Dairn looked puzzled "Why what ma'am?"

She leaned forward, her face becoming entirely serious "Why do you kill and risk being killed? Why did you liberate the villages?"

Dairn was silent, unable to answer her or even himself _"Why did I save them?"_

The silence didnt last long as Erza's impatience shined through "Well? I asked you a question"

"I....I do not know ma'am" He replied a little shakily

"What? What do you mean 'you don't know'"

"I just...felt like I had to"

This seemed to put Erza's mood in the positive, judging by her faint smile. "Well, that is a good enough reason for now. Though i must make sure my people are happy under your...rule"

"I assure you ma'am, they are very happy. I have not done anything harmful to them"

She smirked "Oh I am sure, however they are still my people and I must check on them myself" She rose up off her seat and taking her weapons with her, led Dairn out to the stables where the horses were tethered. She was given a magnificent stallion, a large chestnut warhorse that seemed to dwarf the humans around it. Erza mounted up in one swing, showing grace even when she was encumbered by her armour.

Dairn however was given the same horse and had taken several tries again to get on. Along with four other soldiers, ones wearing armour similar to Erza's, they made their way to the villages.

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**Not so late this time but still late, sorry. **

**Since 5000 words for every chapter seems to be too much for me in my lazy glory I have decided to limit the chapters to 2500, I apologize for any inconvenience caused**. **This should not deter you though from reviewing so...click the green-ish button and tell me what you think.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hello to anyone who reads the AN! This is the next chapter of Rise of the Lord and i hope you enjoy and review!  
**

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**Rise of the Lord**

The ride was uncomfortable, unbearable, rough, agonizing and any and all words associated with pain. For Dairn anyway, who was trailing at the back with his legs mashing themselves against the horse and his hands were tightly gripping the saddle like before. The path being bumpy and uneven made things worse for the Overlord. _"Please! Please let it end!"_ was his only thought when they FINALLY reached the village closest to the coast, Hardrock.

Once they were spotted they were immediately greeted by Aelin and Liryn who welcomed them to the village. The group dismounted, much to Dairn's relief, and followed Erza and Aelin as the village mayor gave the red head a tour. The villagers ran out to meet the group forming lines on the side of the dirt paths and cheer with them about things like recent victories or mourn for their fallen comrades. The children were especially energetic, running up to them despite their parents warnings not to.

Erza enjoyed this, her people were happy it seemed with their lord. She had asked Aelin about Dairn and she was surprised he actually didnt demand anything of them, he just kept them safe with the minion guards which Erza occasionally seen running about. She was intrigued by them but didnt ask any questions, her curiosity would have to be satisfied later, now though her people were the priority. Once they finished the tour she had concluded that the village was happy and recovering from their trauma caused by the bandits. Though she had met with some of the women who were taken prisoner and Erza was sickened to hear about how they were treated, it just added more fuel to the fire.

Mounting their horses, with Dairn trying several times, they made their way to Basin. Erza enjoyed the ride through the mostly barren grassland with the wind blowing across her face, it was relaxing, she had not taken a ride through the country in a long time. She remembered when she was a child her parents would take her out of the stuffy city to just gallop around the countryside. Those were enjoyable times, times when she was not burdened with the responsibility of being a general or a beacon of hope for her people. She was just Erza Scarlet, a normal girl who enjoyed riding a horse every now and then.

She shook her head to dismiss such thoughts _"Those are times that have passed Erza, it is pointless to remember now"_

Basin came just past a small hill, from this vantage point she could see the entire village below her. The farmers were out working the fields as normal but there was a watchtower manned by minion guards and a few more guards inside the village itself. Once they arrived the group were greeted by Doryn who looked surprised to have Erza herself in his little village. Like in Hardrock, Erza asked for a tour to see the condition of the village.

As before the villagers ran out to greet them with the children being the most exited. Erza gave them a loving smile and even played with them for a short while. For the accompanying guards they enjoyed themselves as much as they could, they might not get a chance like this in a long while. Dairn though was busy being pulled away by an irate Lilia who berated him for not visiting her in a cute, childish way that Dairn just could not help but laugh at.

The two played child games with other children unaware they were being watched. Erza smiled at the sight of it, maybe this Dairn would be a good ally to have. Unfortunately she had to end it because there was still one village to inspect but seeing the other two villages Erza doubted the last one would be any different. The group walked back to where the horses were left and mounted, Erza found it amusing that this so called 'lord' could not even mount a horse properly.

Despite Dairn's uselessness with animals they made good timing and arrived at Woodrough at dusk, passing the numerous corpses of bandits from the forest ambush. May looked like she was going to faint when she saw them but stopped herself from doing so. Dismounting their horses Dairn and the soldiers followed Erza as she let May lead them around the village, as before the villagers rushed up to meet them, or more specifically Erza.

"She has a way with people doesn't she?" One of the soldiers suddenly spoke to him.

Dairn looked at the man but he could not see much detail under the helmet, he did however see amber eyes and some facial hair. "Yes, you'd think she was a goddess"

The man chuckled "I have heard some say that about her before, my name is Eric by the way" He held out his hand and Dairn gripped the mans arm and shook it.

"Dairn if you haven't already known"

Eric smiled "You are a very interesting person"

"How so?"

"Well, in my experience lords usually demand something from their subjects like money for example. You however do nothing of the sort, why is that?"

They were in silence for a moment as they followed Erza through the tour "They have nothing I want, I have no desire for riches or land or anything like that. For now at least" He mumbled the last part quietly.

Eric looked at him oddly for a minute "An interesting person indeed. Well, as long as the people are happy it's all fine. Can I ask where you come from?"

Dairn suddenly found himself nervous, he couldn't tell the man he came from Basin as a simple farmer boy, that would be too suspicious when they knew he eliminated a bandit force of two hundred. "The...North"

Eric raised an eyebrow "The North?" He asked "Where? Which state?"

"Take a guess" Dairn would have sighed in relief, now all he had to do was choose.

"Hmmm" The soldier inspected him closer "Well, your armour design is similar to the Dilians but yours looks to be of higher quality. Your shield is exactly like the Paeros's, wood topped with bronze. Your blade however I have not seen used in any of the states but it does look somewhat like the falcata and the makhiara, the former is mainly used by the Iberians(1) to the north-west and the latter is common in the north-eastern states and some south-eastern as well. Well, your equipment does not exactly narrow my choices down by a lot"

Dairn chuckled to prevent himself from gulping "It's not that hard is it?"

"Your accent isnt fine like most, it's a bit rough like the Iberians but your frame is too small to be one of those giants. You look lithe, common in the eastern and southern regions. Definitely not one of the Gorgons unless your hiding your breasts, more like a Paerosian. Your tanned skin does not help a lot since nearly everyone is. Argh! Just tell me already" Eric said exasperated.

"Hehe, well I might as well say it. Im a Paerosian" _That was too close_ The overlord thought in relief.

Eric looked impressed judging by the whistle he let out "Wow, really?"

Dairn nodded. The group were nearly done with the tour since it looked like they were approaching the village gate from the other side they started on. "Well my Paerosian friend, you must tell me some battle stories some time" Eric patted him in the shoulder and brought him closer to whisper in his ear "And maybe tell me how good the Gorgons are in bed eh?" He asked with a smirk.

Before Dairn could ask what he meant the tour was finished and the group had to mount their horses. Dairn didnt have as much trouble as before, he only fell off five times instead of seven. They bid farewell to the village and made their way towards Erza's base in a gallop. The sun was down and although there were no reported bandits in the area it was safer to get to the village faster.

Dairn although he hated horses did appreciate the nice feel of the wind on his face and the small rush of excitement he had when he went at speed. He did however had to be lead by Eric to keep him from falling off at the speed. Soon the Dairn could see the sea and a few minutes later the breeze rushed to his nose. Once they reached the coastal village, which Eric told Dairn was named Basalt, the overlord was escorted to Erza's headquarters.

The redhead took a seat at the table and invited Dairn to sit opposite her. "Well sir Dairn, you seem to have a good standing with the people and they appreciate you not demanding anything of them. I am very pleased about this" She smiled _"She looks good when she smiles"_ Dairn thought offhandedly "I would like to offer you an alliance between us two, im sure we could do much more together than alone dont you think so?"

Dairn didnt really have to think about the offer, he needed Erza's help to retrieve his family and stand against Gard. He nodded "I would be honored to accept"

The two got up and shook hands by the wrist "Well, now that is done I must ask something of you" She said as she sat back down.

"What is it?"

"There is a bandit lord not far from one of my villages called Theron, have you heard of him?"

Dairn's body grew cold at the name "Yes I have" He said cooly.

Erza sensed the change in the overlord but didnt say anything "I would like him eliminated but I can only appoint so much men to the task, about a hundred actually, I would need your help to crush his superior numbers but you must be willing to follow the commander. It is not meant as an insult but I know and trust on his abilities more than yours"

Dairn nodded "It is no insult ma'am, just tell me where to go"

Erza got up and pulled a scroll out of one of the shelves behind her, opening it up it showed a map marked with blue and red "The blue marked areas are where my soldiers are and the red marked areas is the enemy" She pointed to a red area "This is where Theron is" She pointed to another area close to the previous one , this time it was blue "And this is where my men are, it's a few hours travel by horse from here but the road is safe. Tonight you will be provided with lodging and you will set off tomorrow early morning" Her tone of voice was commanding, as if she was talking to a soldier.

"Sire" Gnarl spoke for the first time in the day "I would suggest making a netherworld gate here and set off in the morning. I'll order Harlond and Dash to find a place for a netherworld gate outside Theron's camp"

"You have been silent for quite a while, why?" Dairn asked

"Erm, well I have been thinking about things" The minion master said nervously

"Like what?"

"Just trying to remember little tips that other Overlords had done to help them, I think some might be useful to you sir" Dairn could not hear Gnarl's quiet sigh.

"Very well"

"Sir Dairn" Erza said a bit forcefully. She did not like him fazing out apparently.

"I apologize, I was thinking too deeply" Dairn said quickly

The woman gave him a disapproving look but didnt press the matter "I was saying this would be a great time for you to tell me about your...pets"

"What would you like to know?"

"First of all I want to know how good they are as soldiers, those guards I saw previously were well armed but their size does not convince me of their strength and they do not look disciplined"

Dairn would have given an explanation but thought a demonstration was better. Ignoring Erza's look he commanded Grubber to open a minion gate inside the building. When Erza was about to ask what he was doing the ground next to him crumbled away and out rose a minion gate. Erza was shocked, so shocked that she had pulled out her sword and pointed it at Dairn. "What is this!?" She demanded.

Dairn turned to her "It is a demonstration ma'am, it will be explained later"

The guards from outside heard the commotion and rushed in brandishing swords at the overlord. Dairn was nervous but tried to suppress that. "This is a minion gate, my pets as you call them are actually called minions and they do not come from here. The purposes of this gate is so that I can summon them from where they are to aid me, like this" He called forth one minion which popped out the gate.

"Master!" It called in it's raspy voice

Erza slowly let down her sword but it still remained outside of its sheath "That was...unexpected"

"These creatures are not of a natural being, they were created to serve the Overlords. There are four types but I only have access to the browns, the others are red, greens and blues. The browns are the main melee fighters, meaning they are very tough and hardy, though not much skilled their strength is more than enough especially in mass numbers"

"And how about their discipline?" Erza asked forgetting her shock, in truth she was very intrigued about these minions. "And are they any tougher or stronger than an average soldier?"

Dairn nodded "They will obey every command I give them and despite their size they are stronger than most humans. They also do not tire as quickly making them last longer on the battlefield"

Erza finally sheathed her sword and commanded the guards to get back to their post and forget anything they heard under penalty of death, such information about her new ally could not be leaked. "Very impressive, however there must be some downfalls"

"There are, I can only control as much as the netherworld lets me. For now the maximum I could field is thirty minions but I am working on a way to get more"

"This netherworld, what is it?"

"The place where they came from" Dairn answered cryptically, she may be his ally but he could not reveal everything.

Erza seemed to accept that answer "Very well, thank you sir Dairn. It is very late and im sure we could both use some sleep"

Dairn bowed but instead of leaving like Erza expected him to he called forth a netherworld gate which he used. After the flash of blue light Erza was left alone astounded once more. "Amazing" She mumbled.

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**Well that is the finished product, hope it did not disappoint. As before please review to tell me what you think and some ideas would be great! Thanks for reading!**

**(1) Interesting fact to anyone who cares: Iberia was the name of Spain before the Romans came and called it Hispania.  
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